Want to take a flight of fancy? The Inland Empire has places to eat that look like the interior of an airplane, a vintage 1950s gas station or a scene out of a horror movie.
Here are five unique dining experiences at restaurants, speakeasies and coffee houses in Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
PS Air Bar & Lounge
611 S. Palm Canyon Drive, Suite 21, Palm Springs; psairbar.com
If anyone is nostalgic for in-flight airline meals, this is the place to go. The speakeasy is in the Sun Center, a mid-century shopping center near the heart of Palm Springs.
The space is decorated like the cabin of a 1960s jet airliner with rows of airplane seats that recline — a little — and are equipped with seatbelts. Overhead are racks holding vintage luggage, glowing clouds and propeller-shaped fans. Window seats offer views to scenic spots plus airborne characters Superman and Sally Field in her TV role as “The Flying Nun.”
There are metallic tables instead of fold-down trays for orders. The food menu includes pizza, charuterie and of course nuts. Prices range from $15-$35. Cocktaills in the $16 range have names like Layover, Jet Lag and Mile High. PS Air has live entertainment some nights, including vocalist Tod Macofsky, who performers in the aisle, sort of like a flight attendant.
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Taco Station
4088 Mission Inn Ave, Riverside; tacostation.com
This restaurant in downtown Riverside marked its 20th anniversary in September. It occupies a converted Shell station and celebrates the days when people drove Chevrolet Bel Airs with tailfins and attendants filled up their tanks, checked their oil and wiped their windshields. Taco Station offers counter service and dining on a patio where two vintage gas pumps remain.
A large menu includes tacos starting at $3.72 and burritos starting at $10.38, plus several rice-and-beans combos in the $15-$17 range and a long breakfast menu. This taqueria stands out in a couple of other ways. It’s a quick service restaurant with a full service bar, which you don’t run across every day. The menu includes beer, micheladas, margarita flights and other cocktails. And through Nov. 2 it’s decked out for Dia de los Muertos.
Taco Station is a block away from Tio’s Tacos, 3948 Mission Inn Ave., another unique taqueria decorated to the nines with art house-made from recyclables.
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Roast the Dead Coffee
12764 California St., Suite A, Yucaipa; www.instagram.com/roast_the_dead_coffee
10330 Hole Ave., Suite 4, Riverside; www.instagram.com/roastthedeadcoffee
These horror-themed coffee houses are in their glory this time of year.
The original, in Yucaipa, opened in 2020. It’s a small, nearly dark space that only holds eight souls at a time. It’s mostly lit by screens showing slasher movies from the 1970s on up, sets with figures from the movies such as Jason from “Friday the Thirteenth” and other memorabilia.
The Riverside shop, which opened in 2024, is larger but almost as dark.
“Killer drinks” have names like Childs Play, Regan and Voorhees. Some have strawberry syrup drizzed on the sides of plastic cups to gory effect. There are also coffees, cold brews called Fogs and iced teas. Prices are in the $8 range.
For Halloween season, Roast the Dead is stocking cookies and cakes with eery designs from Lunas Sweets & Treats on weekends. It also offers merchandise such as graphic novels and jewelry.
My Friend’s House
330 Third St., Redlands; redlandspublicmarket.com
This underground speakeasy in Redlands Public Market is like a visit to “Wayne’s World.” The setting is a sburban house from the 1990s with period video games that customers can play as well as decorations such analog computers and wall phones.
The menu includes pizza slices and cocktails such as Ginnifer Aniston, priced around $14.
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Magic Lamp Inn
8189 Foothill Blvd, Rancho Cucamonga; magiclamprestaurant.com
This old-school steakhouse dates from 1955 is on Route 66 and is distinctive enough to qualify as a roadside attraction. It has a mansion-like exterior and a vaguely “Arabian Nights” theme. Its most famous feature is its neon sign shaped like Aladdin’s Lamp with a gas flame.
The restaurant’s current owners have gone even more old school with the interior, which includes a portrait of Marilyn Monroe. The menu includes steak, chicken, seafood and pasta with entrées around $32-$98. Sides are a la carte.
A new outdoor patio called “Magic Gardens” features a bar and a limited food menu. It’s currently open on weekends.
There’s a dress code, which according to the Magic Lamp website is strictly enforced.
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